27 January 2014

Priority Transport, a dedicated European express logistics specialist, has expanded its fleet with the delivery of three new Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans, each mounted with Carrier Transicold Pulsor™ 400 MT (multi-temperature) refrigeration units. Since the units entered operation, the Exeter-based business has benefited from the Pulsor unit’s pull-down speed, reaching the set point twice as fast as conventional refrigeration technology. Carrier Transicold helps improve global transport and shipping temperature control with a complete line of equipment for refrigerated trucks, trailers and containers, and is a part of UTC Building & Industrial Systems, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX).

Patented E-Drive™ technology, which has been specially adapted from Carrier’s Vector™ all-electric trailer system, is key to the Pulsor 400 unit’s performance. This enables it to deliver impressive reliability due to fewer moving parts, whilst also transforming engine power into electricity via a generator. An inverter then regulates the power delivered according to refrigeration needs, whilst a variable-speed hermetic compressor delivers constant capacity in all refrigeration phases.

The Pulsor 400 MT unit can reach full refrigeration capacity at low engine speeds (1,000 rpm), ensuring it can maintain temperature integrity throughout the delivery cycle. This high and continuous refrigeration capacity at low engine speeds is ideally suited to Priority Transport, because the company’s fleet routinely operates in congested city centres across Europe. In contrast, a conventional refrigeration unit’s compressor is connected to the vehicle’s engine and runs at the same speed, only reaching optimum capacity at approximately 2,400 rpm.

“We already specify Carrier Transicold fridge systems on our trucks, so we had no hesitation in adopting Carrier’s latest Pulsor technology at the lighter end of our fleet. So far, the new Pulsor units have really impressed us; mechanically, they haven’t missed a beat, and the pull-down speed saves us significant time,” said Steve Brown, managing director, Priority Transport.

“Ensuring temperature integrity is critical, so we’re prepared to invest in the very best refrigeration equipment. With the Pulsor units, even our smallest delivery vehicles have the ability to simultaneously cool and heat multiple compartments varying between -30 and 30 degrees Celsius (-22 degrees and 86 degrees Fahrenheit). It’s why customers trust us to transport their most precious cargoes across the continent,” Brown added.

Priority Transport was established in 1995 and focuses on the dedicated distribution and collection of all types of freight to and from any European country using a fleet of dedicated vehicles.